An end to PUBG Mobile's troubles in India is not in sight as the popular battle royale online game continues to get criticised by the public, schools and colleges. While there are no plans to completely ban PUBG Mobile in India on a national or even a state level, concerns are mounting around the game's adverse effect on its players.
After an 11-year-old kid from Maharashtra appealed to seven ministers and the Bombay High Court to ban PUBG Mobile on the grounds of immoral conducts such as violence, murder, aggression, addiction to gaming, looting and cyberbullying. Now, a Delhi-based government body DCPCR (short for Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights) has marked online games like PUBG harmful, negative and impact children's brain.
The DCPCR sent a notice to all schools in Delhi, warning about the effects of online gaming on kids. Besides PUBG, the note mentioned other popular online games such as Fortnite, Grand Theft Auto, God of War, Hitman, Plague Inc and Pokemon, ANI reported.
"There are several games in which children can murder zombies or drive vehicles at boisterous speeds. These games are full of misogyny, hate, deceit and vengeance and it may negatively impact their brain," the advisory board warned.
The advisory sent out to all schools in the country's capital is a preventive measure and in wake of the recent incidents in Gujarat and Mumbai, DCPCR member Ranjanna Prasad said. He also urged schools and parents to watch out for signs like kids being withdrawn, lack in interest in activities they enjoyed, mood swings and sudden outbursts of anger as they could be caused from playing violent online games.
Speaking of the incidents in Gujarat and Mumbai, the former is regarding the state-wide ban on PUBG Mobile across all primary schools and the latter is in reference to the shocking suicide of an 18-year-old teen over a new phone to play PUBG Mobile. There have been other incidents related to PUBG Mobile in India, which has put the game on the radar.
Recently, Jammu & Kashmir Students body and medical doctors association urged the governor to enforce a ban on the popular game. Last year, Services for Healthy Use of Technology (SHUT) clinic in NIMHANS reported having registered 120 cases of PUBG addiction.
